This is a zine dedicated to black metal written by a follower of the left hand path, This zine has been around in a different format for a while and I have decided to make an edition for www.blogger.com, for more information email occultblackmetalzine@yahoo.com, new albums as well as classic albums will be reviewed on here as long as their good quality black metal,

Monday, December 31, 2012

Aetherium Mors are a band from the U.K that plays a very fast and aggressive form of black metal with death metal influences and this is a review of their 2012 album "Drenched In Victorious Blood".

Drums range from slow, mid paced to fast drumming with some blast beats being utilized at times, while the bass playing has a very dark tone with riffs that follow the riffing that is coming out of the guitars.

Rhythm guitars range from slow, mid paced to fast black metal riffs that are very heavy and aggressive sounding with a good amount of death metal influences and dark sounding melodies being thrown into the riffing as well as a brief use of clean playing, w hile the lead guitars are very melodic sounding black/death metal guitar solos and leads, as for the classical guitars when they are utilized on the last song they use finger picking and full chords to enhance the darkness that is coming out of the music.

Vocals are mostly grim sounding and high pitched black metal screams along with a brief use of deep death metal vocals, while the lyrics cover Occultism, Luciferian, Darkness, and Anti Christian themes, as for the production it has a very strong, powerful and heavy sound for being a self released recording.

In my opinion Aetherium Mors are a very great sounding black metal band with death metal and melodic edge and if you are a fan of this musical style, you should check out this album. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Luciferian March" "The Fall Of God" and "Annihilating Fire". RECOMMENDED BUY.

Sunday, December 23, 2012

Hacavitz are a band from Mexico that plays a very heavy, aggressive, raw and primitive sounding hybrid of black, death and war metal and this is a review of their 2007 album "Katun" which was released by Moribund Records.

Drums range from slow, mid paced to fast drumming with a great amount of brutal sounding blast beats being thrown into the music at times, while the bass playing has a very dark tone with riffs that follow the riffing that is coming out of the guitars.

Rhythm guitars range from slow, mid paced to fast riffs that are very heavy aggressive, brutal, raw and primitive sounding combining black, death and war metal together to create a sound of their own, while the lead guitars are very chaotic sounding black/death metal guitar solos and leads.

Vocals range from high pitched black metal screams to deep blackened death metal growls as well as some shamanistic sounds of mixture, while the lyrics are written in a mixture of Spanish and English and cover Satanism, Aztec, Mayan and Occult themes, as for t he production it has a very dark, heavy, raw and primitive sound to it.

In my opinion Hacavitz are a very great sounding heavy, brutal, aggressive, raw and primitive sounding hybrid of black, war and death metal and if you are a fan of this musical genre, you shoulc check out this band. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Regnum Satani(In League With Satan We Ride)" "Summoning Self-Destruction" "Ride Thee Nebulah" and "Serpents Ov Smoke". RECOMMENDED BUY.

1. Can you give us an update on what is going on with the band these days?

I am currently busy doing the last works on the artwork and band photos. And of course we are happy that „monument in black“ will finally be released.

2. How would you describe the musical sound of the new album and how it differs from previous releases?

Every album represents a snapshot of the time when the songs were written. So this fact alone always leads to some differences. I can't and won't say that "monument in black" is better or worse than our debut album "raw dark pure" Both stand for themselves. In my eyes the songwriting for "monument in black" was more natural since we wrote most of the songs together in the rehearsal room and not everyone for himself at home.

3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the new release explores?

Many of the lyrics were written by the former Dark Fortress vocalist Azathoth. His lyrics deal a lot with hatred, death, despair, fears. Mine deal with freedom of mind and personal revolution of the individual.

These catchwords may not sound thrilling but I think the lyrics have a lot to offer when you really get into them.

4. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the bands name?

We chose the name since we wanted to combine old-school elements with modern elements just like the style of music we wanted to play. "Sonic“ has a modern sound, while "reign" sounds more old-school. It's that simple.

5. There has been a 7 year gap between the last album what was going on during those years?

The recordings for "monument in black" were finished already autumn 2011 so the gap was not THAT big. Since then we were looking for a label to release it. The years until 2011 brought many changes. E.g. I moved some hundred kilometers away from our studio so it was not possible to rehearse that much. And then we are lazy bastards you must know.

6. Has the band been able to play out live or is this a studio project?

We just record albums and never played live so far. I think we will stick to that. Otherwise we wouldn't be able to keep our dramatic speed in recording albums.

7. On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of black metal?

We are a pretty unknown band so there's no worldwide level. But the feedback we received so far was mostly very good.

8. What direction do you see your music heading into on future releases?

Azathoth will join the band in the next release. It is a one-release-experiment we want to do to get some new inspiration. You know sometimes the motivation to do music needs to be refreshed. We'll see what kind of music we'll do to fit his new lyrics. Yet no new music is done.

9. What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

When we started we wanted to do music like Satyricon (specially "rebel extravaganza“) or Emperor. Behemoth is another band I really love. Besides that I listen to a shitload of music of various styles. Turbonegro, Enslaved, Kvelertak, The Vision Bleak, Megadeth, Pink Floyd, Wolfmother, Stellar Master Elite and so on and so on...

10. Does Occultism play any role in your music?

Nah, not really. Maybe in a few parts of the lyrics. But this does not happen intentionally.

11. Outside of music what are some of your interests?

I love to go hiking, and to travel with my old VW-bus and to barbecue and get drunk.

12. Any final words or thoughts before we wrap up this interview?

I thank you for your support. Check us out here http://www.facebook.com/sonicreign

Friday, December 21, 2012

Ptahil are a band from Indiana that has been featured before in this zine with a musical style that mixes raw and primitive sounding satanic/occult black metal with doom metal and punk influences and this is a review of their 2012 album "The Almighty Propagatar Of Doom ANd Despair" which was released by Wraith Productions.

Drums range from slow, mid paced to fast drumming with some blast beats being utilized at times, while the bass playing has a very strong and powerful tone with some heavy riffing that dominates throughout the riffing and brings a classic metal punk sound to the music, as for the sound effects when they are utilized they bring an evil psychedelic sound to the music.

Rhythm guitars range from slow, mid paced to fast riffs that combine raw and primitive sounding black metal with punk and doom metal to give the music an old school sound while retaining the darkness of modern day satanic occult black metal bands as well as going back to t he early 80's roots and there are little to no guitar solos or leads present on this recording.

Vocals a re mostly early 80's style black metal s creams and growls with some more modern high pitched screams and deep demonic growls along with some ritualistic spoken word parts, while the lyrics cover Satanism, Occultism and Darkness, as for the production it has a very dark, heavy, raw and primitive sound to it while you can still hear all of the musical instruments present on this recording along with some of the songs being long and epic in length.

In my opinion this is another great sounding recording from Ptahil and if you are a fan of t his band, you should check out this album. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Satanicus Sabbathicus" "Pact With The Devil" and "Hell Spells And Satanic Rituals". RECOMMENDED BUY.

1. Can you tell us a little bit about the project for those that have never heard of you before?

On the surface, Yayla is a musical project that makes heavy hearted and powerful music. It is a narrative, philosophical, depressive journey saturated with sound and feeling. Music to sanctify those who are in the deepest dark.

2.How would you describe your musical sound?

The dark form of dark content. Since I play completely different genres on and within albums, I would describe it simply as a very sorrowful and dense sounding trancelike metal alongside shooting dark ambient. Sometimes these two styles are fused together. In terms of sound, the future holds different horizons

3. What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?

Various subjects. To tell outright my own interpretation of my work would maybe take away from the sort of experience that I want to create with Yayla. After all, the things I feel before, whilst and after the writing of lyrics are my personal interpretations of what I experience interacting with the work. This experience is only just as valid if not less than what other people might interpret. The lyrics for Nihaihayat are actually going to be released as a print within the CD packaging. It is only a matter of time before people post it online and make their own interpretations which I eagerly look forward to.

4. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the bands name?

The word has a literal meaning in Turkish, it is used to describe a certain geographical landscape. My humble opinion on what Yayla is, it is the reflection of my feelings within the paradigm that is Yayla. It is legit to call it a parallel universe or existence. But at the same time, this paradigm is way too vague in my head to be called that, or in other words, I do not feel adequately aware of its nature. It has its roots in the entirety of my mind, ergo the entirety of my thoughts. But as said before, it is but the reflections of my thoughts in the paradigm. The essence is, some of these reflections are able to grow in that paradigm, and try to become, whereas others, and the ones that reach out of its boundaries, they either stagnate or dissolve into oblivion. Those that feel the need to grow the most, grow until they become Yayla albums.

5. Currently the project is solo, have you thought of forming a full band or do you choose to remain solo?

Yayla actually started out as a two piece, and we have demos from that period. Nowadays I compose, conceptualize and play the music myself. The recording/mixing/mastering involves a friend called Cristobal Urbina without whom, Yayla would not be sounding like Yayla. As far as actual composition and performance ( a.k.a creative collaboration) goes, the only way I see it ever happening at this point is if I recruit that same person from the start again. Until then, I have no problem remaining solo. Yet, I never say never.

6. The new album is coming out on Merdumgiriz Records, how did you get in contact with this label and how would you describe the support that they have given you so far?

I co-own this label with a manager. I was looking for a label with my demo back in 2009, only sent the demos to the highest regarded metal labels. One of the labels told me there was no way anyone was going to release such music and that if I'd like to see it out so much, to release it myself. I have told this story to a friend of mine who said we should get together and start an art company. It started there, but then he decided to call it quits halfway and I found myself alone again. From there, I asked the previous Yayla member Merdumgiriz to help manage the label, he has been taking care of promotion and talking to people and all that stuff which leaves more room for me to make films, photography, music and art for the label.

7. On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of black metal?

Surprisingly very positive. Usually for my work in other areas of art, peoples’ feedback is of the "beauty hidden in unrelenting rawness" nature. Unsurprisingly for my music, people say it is very fascinating but very hard to listen to. Which at first glance does not make sense, but after a while it does... Reminding me of how I used to be ravished by rave music when I was 7 years old, yet had a hard time digesting the aggression. So far as reviews go, they have been very positive and entertaining. Few months ago Merdumgiriz sent me a batch of many reviews that have been made so far, it was like reading a psychoanalytic report of myself. I had a good time reading what people seemed to think to say the least.

8. What direction do you see your music heading into on future releases?

I am currently working on a rock album for a feature length narrative film that I have shot and been editing. This album is not going to be released as Yayla but under some other name, and I will probably be making more of it in the future. After that, first thing is to make another Yayla album. This time it is going to be a slower and a more pastoral sounding music. Afterwards, I will make two more Yayla albums one of which will most probably be acoustic and the other one will be a gnawing and extremely bleak black metal/ambient album. All these albums and more are composed, I just need to find the time and space to produce them.

9. What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

That question is wider than meets the eye. And if I do not filter this answer I am sure some metalheads will be alienated when they hear last night I listened to the album Guilty by Streisand two times. Moreover, I think as far as I can see, all the bands that I listened to and liked, even some that I did not like have influenced my music. The main six bands that I grew up on thanks to my mother and father are Simon & Garfunkel, Cat Stevens, Pink Floyd, Dire Straits, Scorpions, Gipsy Kings. When I was 8 I started listening to Metallica and they are pretty much the main influence on me choosing metal as an artistic medium. In my teens came death and black metal and I am still listening to and making it. The influences are pretty apparent there, take it from Bathory (include his rock albums and viking albums) sweep across the globe and bring it till today. Nowadays I am listening to a lot to Neverdays; another band that we have on Merdumgiriz. Not many knows them but this one man band makes one of the finest acoustic music ever made. Other than him, I found out about Nocturnal Poisoning few days ago and been listening to it, Depressive Silence is another recent find which I love.

10. Does Satanism or Occultism play any role in your music?

None whatsoever. I am not saying I will never directly use the schools of thought or philosophical cosmoses of the ones before me but I currently choose not to. I have spoken about Occultism to friends of mine who are deep into it. Very good people with whom I have the best time philosophizing and creative thinking. They have been telling me about their ways and how the way they live and think effects their work. The idea seems interesting, and I do not think submission and discipline is unfruitful, but what I have been faced with so far would not seem to float my boat. Moreover, I do not think I am currently able or willing to perform the loyalties such teachings require, simply because I am afraid of disappointment and having to deal with the hatred that comes with it. But I do have my own ever growing school of thought about existence and death, which plays a great role on all the art I make.

11. Outside of music what are some of your interests?

I am more of a filmmaker than a musician, but we have not yet put out my films. Festivals are not showing any interest in them so far. I am guessing this is because I do not have friends in the film world and simply because my films are long and monotonous like my music. In any case, very soon a short film for Nihaihayat will be released online and my two long experimental films Fear Through Eternity and Adana; GOTCTIWKM will both be released on DVD. Other than that I am into photography and art in general. I do write a lot also, but it is long down the road before I find a proper way of releasing it. All my other work can be sampled through www.merdumgiriz.org

12. Any final words or thoughts before we wrap up this interview?

Thanks for the interest, I'd like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who is supporting my work. More is to come, towards new horizons!

Behexen are a band from Finland that plays a very raw and primitive form of satanic black metal and this is a review of their 2008 album "My Soul For His Glory" which was released as a joint effort between Moribund Records and Hammer Of Hate Records.

Drums range from slow, mid paced to fast d rumming with a good amount of blast beats being thrown into the music at times, while the synths which are only utilized on the intro bring a very dark and ritualistic sound to t he music, as for the bass playing it has a very dark tone with riffs that follow the riffing that is coming out of the guitars.

Rhythm guitars range from slow, mid paced to fast black metal riffs that are very dark, raw and primitive sounding with some melody and thrash influences being thrown into the riffing at times, while the lead guitars when they are utilized are very dark and melodic sounding guitar solos and leads.

Vocals range from high pitched and grim sounding black metal screams along with some deep demonic growls being utilized at times as well as some Gergorian chants, while the lyrics cover Satanism, Occultism and Rituals, as for the production it has a very dark, raw and primitive sound to it.

In my opinion Behexen are a very great sounding raw and primitive satanic black metal band and if you are a fan of t his musical genre, you should check out this album. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Born In The Serpent Of The Abyss" "Cathedral Of The Ultimate Void" and "And All Believers Shall Be Damned". RECOMMENDED BUY.

Zyklon where a band from Norway that had many well known members from that scene with a musical style that combine Norwegian black metal with some death metal and industrial influences and this is a review of their 2001 album "World Ov Worms" which was released by Candlelight Records.

Drums range from slow, mid paced to fast drumming with a great amount of brutal sounding blast beats being thrown into t he music, while the bass playing has a very dark tone with riffs that follow the riffing that is coming out of the guitars, as for the sound effects they bring an industrial sound to the music as well as a brief use of synths.

Rhythm guitars range from slow, mid paced to fasst riffs that combine Norwegian style black metal with death metal with a great amount of heavy and melodic riffing, while the lead guitars are Florida style death metal guitar solos and leads.

Vocals range from grim sounding and high pitched black metal screams to deep death metal growls as well as a great amount of industrial style vocals spoken word samples in addition there is a brief use of clean singing being utilized on the last song, while the lyrics cover anti christianity, violence and war themes, as for t he production it has a very strong, powerful, heavy and professional sound to it.

In my opinion this was a great sounding recording from Zyklon and if you are a fan of this band, you probably already own this album. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Hammer Revelation" "Zykloned" and "Worm World". RECOMMENDED BUY.

1. Can you give us an update on what is going on with the band these days?

Currently we are up in the air, flying over the Atlantic Ocean and heading to Brazil. We just had breakfast and are very excited to play our first show in South America soon. Everything is doing very good with the band and we're very happy to get a lot of good resonance on our new album Kuningaz.

2. How would you describe the musical sound of the new album and how it

differs from previous recordings?

Kuningaz is a very hard album. It is harder than our last CDs "Hammerfeste" and "Noor" have been. This is a result of the fact that our new drummer Mischa likes to play fast and hard stuff. Besides that, it is also an album which features a lot of acoustic instruments and folk parts. This time we got some support from Mario Pontigo, who is a friend of our flutist Anne. He played and wrote most of the viola lines. We think that the contrast between hard metal and folk is a very strong element of Kuningaz. It is also a very melancholic album. This might be a result of the problems we had with our former label.

Kuningaz could be seen as a link between old Adorned Brood songs and our newer material. It is very atmospheric like our older recordings, but it is also modern. We see it as a consequent development of our style.

3. What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores

with the new release?

On Kuningaz, we tried to write about modern topics and everyday life issues and to combine these topics with the ancient myths. The song "A War Poem" even deals with love. But of course we also wrote about the Gods, Odin and warriors again.

4. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the bands name?

The name Adorned Brood means the ‘wolf in a sheepskin’. We're tried to explain our music in two words.

5. What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and

how would you describe your stage performance?

That is not easy to answer, because there have been a lot of shows that we enjoyed, such as the Wacken Open Air or Ragnaroek festival for example. But not only the big festival gigs are much fun. Smaller gigs with a more familiar atmosphere can also be great, but the last gig that was really awesome was at the "Wave Gotik Treffen" in Leipzig, Germany this year.

The crowd was really going wild there!

6. Do you have any touring plans for the new release?

Yes. A tour is already planned and there are also some festival shows confirmed for next year. Check out our homepage for all dates so far: http://www.adornedbrood.de/de/live/

A lot of more shows are being planned and will be announced soon.

7. On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your new album by

fans of pagan metal?

Most of the reviews we got were really good. We already got some top ratings. It seems like a lot of people worldwide enjoy "Kuningaz". We also got many mails from fans that congratulated us on our new songs. There are a lot of different facets in the songs and for that fact it seems like all the people have differing favorite songs.

8. What direction do you see your music heading into on future releases?

We did not think about that yet and it is something we can't answer by now. At the moment we are concentrating on rehearsing the new material and on playing live.

9. What are some band or musical styles that have influenced your music

and also what are you listening to nowadays?

Of course we are influenced by Pagan Metal and Black Metal. But we also listen to 80s style rock, progressive music, classical music and Jazz. Every one of us has a different individual taste and adds his own style to our music.

This is a review of a split album between Finland's Horna and Musta Surma called "Vihan Voudet" which was originally released by Grieventee Productions in 2004 and re-issued by Moribund Records and we will start of the review with Horna a band that has been featured before in this zine with a musical style that I would describe as being raw and primitive sounding satanic black metal.

Drums range from slow, mid paced to fast drumming with some blast beats being utilized at times, while the bass playing has a very dark tone with riffs that follow the riffing that is coming out of the guitars and at times they have a very powerful sound to them.

Rhythm guitars range from slow, mid paced to fast black metal riffs that are very dark, raw and primitive sounding in the true black metal tradition as well as a brief use of melody and there are no guitar solos or leads present on their side of the recording.

Vocals are mostly grim sounding black metal screams that have a depressive sound to them at times along with some deep demonic growls being utilized at times in addition there is a brief use of clean singing being utilized on one song, while the lyrics are written in Finnish and cover Satanism and Occultism themes, as for the production it has a very dark, raw and primitive sound to it.

In my opinion this was another great sounding recording from Horna and if you are a fan of this band, you should check out their side of the split. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Hel" and "Surun Ikuistmi Henki". RECOMMENDED.

Next up is Musta Surma a band that plays a very raw and primitive form of satanic black metal.

Drums range from slow, mid paced to fast drumming with some blast beats being utilized at times, while the bass playing has a very strong and powerful sound with primitive black metal riffing that dominates throughout their side of the recording.

Rhythm guitars range slow, mid paced to fast Finnish style black metal riffs that are very dark, raw and primitive sounding in the old school tradition with some dark sounding melodies being thrown into the riffing at times which utilizes some atmospheric parts as well as some thrash influences and there are no guitar solos or leads present on their side of the recording.

Vocals are mostly grim sounding and high pitched black metal screams with some deep demonic growls being utilized at times, while the lyrics are written in Finnish and cover Darkness and Satanism themes, as for the production it has a very dark, raw and primitive sound to it while you can still hear all of the musical instruments that are present on their side of the recording. Satanism themes, as for the production it has a very dark, raw and primitive sound to it while you can still hear all of the musical instruments that are present on this recording.

In my opinion Musta Surma are a very great sounding raw and primitive black metal band and if you are a fan of this musical genre, you should check out their side of the recording. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Kuolonmrysky" and "Usvan Lapset". RECOMMENDED.

In conclusion I feel this is a very great sounding split and I would recommend it to all fans of Finnish black metal. RECOMMENDED BUY.

Thursday, December 20, 2012

Throcult where a band from Denver, Colorado that played avery fast, agressive and heavy form of black metal with this recording and this is a review of their 2004 album "Stormbringer-Conjuration Of The Nighthorde" which was released by Crash Music.

Drums range from slow, mid paced to fast drumming with some blast beats being thrown into the music at times, while the bass playing has a very dark tone with riffs that follow the riffing that is coming out of the guitars and at times they have a very powerful sound to them.

Rhythm guitars range from slow, mid paced to fast black metal riffs that are very heavy, agressive, dark, raw and primitive sounding with some death metal influences being thrown in the riffing at times as well as some melody as well as a brief use of soft and clean playing and there are no guitar solos or leads present on this recording.

Vocals are mostly high pitched black metal screams with some deep blackened death metal growls being utilized at times as well as a brief use of spoken word parts, while the lyrics cover Darkness, Occult and Satanic themes, as for the production it has a very heavy, raw and primitive sound to it.

In my opinion this was a very great sounding album from Throcult and if you a re a fan of agressive and fast and aggressive black metal and if you are a fan of this musical genre, you should check out this album. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Order Of The Lunar Temple" "On Demon WIngs" "Unholy Perversions" and "Star From Sirius". RECOMMENDED BUY.

Funebris where a band from Germany that played a very old school, raw and primitive form of evil black metal and this is a review of their 2001 album "Triumph Of The Everlasting Fire" which was released by Last Episode Productions.

Drums range from slow, mid paced to fast drumming with a great amount of brutal sounding blast beats being thrown into the music at times, while the bass playing has a very strong and powerful sound with heavy riffing that dominates throughout the recording.

Rhythm guitars range from slow, mid paced to fast black metal riffs that are very heavy, raw and primitive sounding with a good amount of melody and some death and thrash metal influences being thrown into the riffing at times and there are no guitar solos or leads present on this recording, as for the acoustic guitars they are only utilized on the last song and they use finger picking to add some darkness to the music.

Vocals are mostly high pitched black metal s creams with some deep death metal growls being thrown into the music at times, while the lyrics cover darkness, evil, and anti christian themes, as for the production it has a very heavy, raw and primitive sound to it while you can still hear all of the musical instruments that are present on this recording.

In my opinion Funebris where a very great sounding heavy, raw and primitive black metal band and if you are a fan of this musical genre, you should check out this recording. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Funeral Anthem" "Cathedral Of Sin" "Apocalypse Of A Dark Age" and "Triumph Of The Everlasting Fire". RECOMMENDED BUY.

Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Yayla are a 1 man band from Turkey that plays a mixture of dark ambient and raw and primitive sounding depressive black metal and this is a review of their 2013 album "Nihaihayat" which will be released by Merdumgiriz.

Drum programming ranges from slow, mid paced to fast beats, while the synths bring a very dark ambient and atmospheric sound to the music, as for the bass playing it has a very dark tone with riffs that follow the riffing that is coming out of the guitars.

Rhythm guitars range from slow, mid paced to fast black metal riffs that are very dark, raw and primitive sounding with a depressive feeling being utilized at times and there are no guitar solos or leads present on this recording.

Vocals range from high pitched and deep black metal screams as well as a brief use of clean singing, while the lyrics cover dark and evil themes, as for the production it has a very dark, raw and primitive sound with the songs being long and epic in length.

In my opinion Yayla are a very great sounding ambient black metal band and if you are a fan of t his musical genre, you should check out this recording. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Through The Sigil Of Hate" and 'Disguises Of Evil". RECOMMENDED BUY.

Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Sonic Reign are a band from Germany that plays a very modern day of black metal and this is a review of their 2013 album "Monument In Black" which will be released by Apostasy Records.

Drums range from slow, mid paced to fast drumming with some blast beats being utilized at times, while the bass playing has a very dark tone with riffs that follow the riffing that is coming out of the guitars.

Rhythm guitars range from slow, mid paced to fast modern day black metal riffs that are very heavy while also retaining some raw and primitive elements as well as some melody in the riffing, while the lead guitars when they are utilized have a black'n'roll feeling to them.

Vocals are mostly grim sounding and high pitched black metal s creams with some spoken word elements being utilized at times, while the lyrics cover dark themes, as for the production it has a very strong, powerful and heavy sound to it with some of the songs being long and epic in length.

In y opinion Sonic Reign are a very great sounding modern day black metal band and if you are a fan of this musical genre, you should check out this album. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Clouds Over The Desert" "Monument In Black" and "Dail Nightmare Injected". RECOMMENDED BUY.

Monday, December 17, 2012

Black Autumn are a band from Germany that has been featured before in this zine with a musical style that I would describe as being ambient black metal with some doom metal influences and this is a review of their 2012 ep "The Advent October" which was released by Bylec Tum.

Drum programming ranges from slow to mid paced beats, while the synths bring a very atmospheric and dark ambient sound to the music, as for the bass playing it has a very dark tone with riffs that follow the riffing that is coming out of the guitars.

Rhythm guitars range from slow to mid paced riffs that combine ambient black metal with doom metal as well as a great amount of dark sounding melodies being thrown into the riffing and there are no guitar solos or leads present on this recording, as for the acoustic guitars when they are utilized they use full chords to enhance the darkness that is coming out of the music.

Vocals are mostly deep doom metal growls mixed in with some deeper depressive black metal screams as well as a brief spoken word parts, while the lyrics cover dark and depressive themes, as for the production it has a very dark, raw and primitive sound to it.

In my opinion t his is another great sounding recording from Black Autumn and if you are a fan of this band, you should check out this ep. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "The Advent October" and "Dead As Martyrs". RECOMMENDED BUY.

Saturday, December 15, 2012

This is a review of a split album between San Francisco, California's Crebain and Leviathan which was released by tULMULt in 2004 and we will start of the review with Crebain a 1 man project which plays a very raw and primitive from of depressive black metal.

Drums range from slow, mid paced to fast drumming with some blast beats being utilized at times, while the bass playing has a very dark tone with riffs that follow the riffing that is coming out of the guitars.

Rhythm guitars range from slow, mid paced to fast depressive black metal riffs that are very dark, raw and primitive sounding with some thrash influences being thrown into the riffing as well as some melodic parts and there little to are no guitar solos or leads present on their side of the recording.

Vocals are all high pitched black metal screams, while the lyrics cover dark, depressive and satanic themes, as for the production it has a very dark, heavy, raw and primitive sound to it with the songs not being either too short or long in length.

In my opinion Crebain are a very great sounding raw and primitive depressive black metal band and if you are a fan of this musical genre, you should check out their side of the recording. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Sorrow Of The Ancients" and "Glorious Age Of Satan". RECOMMENDED.

Next up is Leviathan a band that has been featured before in this zine with their musical style being fast, heavy, raw ad primitive sounding atmospheric/depressive black metal.

Drums range from slow, mid paced to fast drumming along with a great amount of blast beats being thrown into the music, while the bass playing has a very dark tone with riffs that follow the riffing that is coming out of the guitars and at times they have a very powerful sound to them, as for the synths w hich are only utilized briefly they bring a dark ambient sound to the music.

Rhythm guitars range from slow, mid paced to fast atmospheric/depressive black metal riffs that are very dark, heavy, raw and primitive sounding and there are no guitar solos or leads present on their side of the recording.

Vocals are mostly grim sounding and high pitched depressive black metal screams with some spoken word parts being utilized at times, while the lyrics cover dark, depressive and occult themes, as for the production it has a very dark, raw and primitive sound to it with some of the songs being long and epic in length.

In my opinion this is another great recording from Leviathan and if you are a fan of this band, you should check out their side of the recording. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Ruminating In Hatemagick" and "Blood ANgel" which is a Von cover. RECOMMENDED.

In conclussion I feel this is a very great sounding split and I would recommend it to all fans of USBM. RECOMMENDED BUY.

Impurity are a band from Brazil that plays a very raw and primitive form of occult black metal and this is a review of their 1996 album "Into The Ritual Chamber" which was released by Cogumelo Records.

Drums range from slow, mid paced to fast drumming with some blast beats being utilized at times, while the bass playing has a very dark tone with riffs that follow the riffing that is coming out of the guitars and at times they have a very powerful sound to them.

Rhythm guitars range from slow, mid paced to fast black metal riffs that are very dark, raw and primitive sounding with somewhat of an old school feeling being thrown into the riffing as well as some dark sounding melodies being utilized at times, while the lead guitars are very dark and melodic sounding guitar solos and leads, as for the acoustic guitars when they are utilized they use finger picking and full chords to enhance the darkness that is coming out of the music.

Vocals are mostly grim sounding and high pitched black metal screams with a brief use of clean singing being utilized on one song in addition one song has a spoken word ritualistic passage, while the lyrics cover Crowley, Paganism, Baphomet and Anti Christian themes, as for the production it has a very dark, raw and primitive sound to it.

In my opinion Impurity are a very great sounding raw and primitive occult black metal band and if you are a fan of this musical genre, you should check out this album. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Baphomet Sheild" and "Iao Treasury". RECOMMENDED BUY.

Menhir are a band from Germany that plays a very atmospheric form of pagan black metal and this is a review of t heir 1997 album "Die Ewigen Steine" which was released by Ars Metalli.

Drums range from slow, mid paced to fast drumming with not much in the way of blast beats, while the keyboards bring a very epic and atmospheric sound to the music, as for the bass playing it has a very dark tone with riffs that follow the riffing that is coming out of the guitars.

Rhythm guitars range from slow, mid paced to fast pagan/black metal riffs that are not either too primitive or mainstream sounding along with a great amount of melody being thrown into the riffing, while the lead guitars are very melodic sounding pagan metal guitar solos and leads, as for t he classical guitars when they are utilized they use finger picking to give the music a medieval sound.

Vocals range from whispers, clean singing pagan vocals to grim sounding and high pitched black metal screams as well as a brief use of spoken word parts, while the lyrics cover Germanic Paganism with a couple of the songs being written in German, as for the production it has a very strong, powerful, heavy and professional sound to it.

In my opinion Menhir are a very great sounding atmospheric pagan/black metal band and if you are a fan of this musical genre, you should check out this album. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Winter" "Warriors Of The North" and "Paganlord". RECOMMENDED BUY.

Martyrium where a band from Germany that played a very raw and primitive form of occult black metal and this is a review of their 1994 album "L.V.X Occulta" which was released by Merciless Records.

Drums range from slow, mid paced to fast drumming with some blast beats being utilized at times, while the synths which are only used on intros bring a very dark, ritualistic and occult sound to the music, as for the bass playing it has a very dark tone with riffs that follow the riffing that is coming out of the guitars and at times they have a very powerful sound to them.

Rhythm guitars range from slow, mid paced to fast black metal riffs that are very dark, raw and primitive sounding in the early 90's tradition with no melodies as well as somewhat of an early death metal feeling in addition there is a brief use of soft and clean playing being utilized on one song and there are little to no guitar solos or leads present on this recording, as for the classical guitars when they are utilized they use finger picking and full chords to enhance the darkness that is coming out of the music.

Vocals are mostly grim sounding and high pitched black metal screams with some spoken word ritualistic passages, clean singing female vocals and whispers, while the lyrics cover Crowley, Luciferian, Satanism, Summerian and Egyptian themes, as for the production it has a very dark, raw and primitive sound to it.

In my opinion Martyrium where a very great sounding raw and primitive occult black metal band and if you are a fan of this musical genre, you should check out this band. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Atum's Speech" "Enuma Elish" "Lucifer Rising" and "Into Midnight Silence". RECOMMENDED BUY.

Friday, December 14, 2012

Hollenthon are a band from Austria that plays a very atmospheric and melodic form of black/dark metal with some folk music and death metal influences and this is a review of their 1999 album "Domus Mundi" which was released by Napalm Records.

Drums range from slow to mid paced drumming with not much in the way of fast playing or blast beats, while the keyboards bring a very epic and atmospheric sound to the music with some influences from classical music mixed in with some folk instruments, as for the bass playing it has a very dark tone with riffs that follow the riffing thatm is coming out of the guitars and at times they have a very powerful sound to them.

Rhythm guitars range from slow to mid paced black/dark metal riffs that utilize a great amount of melody and death metal influences in the riffing, while the lead guitars when they are utilized are very melodic sounding guitar solos and leads that have a Celtic folkk music feeling to then.

Vocals r ange from high pitched black metal screams, deep death metal growls as well as a brief use of war shouts and spoken word parts being utilized on a couple of songs, while the lyrics are written in Gallic and cover Celtic Pagan themes, as for the production it has a very strong, powerful, heavy and professional sound to it where you can hear all of the musical instruments that are present on this recording.

In my opinion Hollenthon are a v ery great sounding hybid of Celtic folk music and dark/black metal with a death metal edge and if you are a fan of t his musical genre, you should check out this band. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Hinc Illae Lacrimae" "Nom Omnis Moriar" and "Lex Talionis". RECOMMENDED BUY.

1. Can you give us an update on what is going on with the band these days?

Infernal Tenebra got signed to Massacre Records in 2012 and we just released our third album entitled New Formed Revelations. We just put out a video for the song Blood Stained Canvas produced by Meisterwerk Productions and recently played a show with Fear Factory and Devin Townsend Project.

2. How would you describe the musical sound of the new album and how it
differs from previous releases?

It follows a certain progression into a melodic death/thrash metal style with prog, groovy and modern elements on top. We added some clean vocals just to spice things up, some accoustic guitars to add atmosphere and several effects and keyboards where we felt it contributed the overall sound. Infernal Tenebra actually used to have a keyboard player back in the day, but today we’re more into modern type of sound, still taking care of being true to our roots. New Formed Revelations was mixed and mastered by Jens Bogren at Fascination Street Studios in Sweden and he did an amazing job bringing the best of us out and making a cohesive, modern and enjoyable record to listen to.

3. What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores
with the music?

The lyrics reflect our life, our society, the position of a human being in today’s world. New Formed Revelations is about humanity left with itself to reflect upon its decisions, directions and paths taken. It's about fallen leaders and regimes. It's a vision of a world based on truthful values lost somewhere on the road.

4. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the bands name?

Infernal Tenebra basically means Shadows of hell. The band was named back on the day of the eclipse of 1999 by our bass player Paolo, the only original band member left. He is into some weird and obscure shit, but I don’t really know much about it, as I (Darko – guitars, vocals) joined the band several years later, in 2003 as a guitarist and took over vocal duties in 2006. I have my own vision of the band’s name. For me, it reflects today’s world, the inability of the human race to get itself together and move into a better place for us all to live our miserable lives. I see it as human stupidity to make sense of what matters, and what doesn’t.

5. What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and
how would you describe your stage performance?

We were very excited to play Bloodstock Open Air 2012 in UK and were amazed by the reactions of the crowd after the show. We also enjoyed opening the first Croatian international festival Metalfest Open Air 2012. I guess we’re not that wild on stage (meaning we don’t jump and headbang like crazy) as our music is pretty much complex and I’d never sacrifice the music performance in favor of stage performance. We also see fans follow what we play carefully, I guess we’re that kind of band where people come to see us first because of the music. But we do go wild sometimes and everything goes to hell.

6. Do you have any touring plans for the new release?

We have plans to participate on several festivals in 2013, but none are confirmed at the moment so I can’t say anything yet. We also got some invitations for possible tours with foreign bands but we’ll choose carefully the band we feel will be ideal for us to be a part of the tour with.

7. On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your newer music by
fans of extreme metal?

It actually started to grow intensely since the album release. People love it, enjoy it, buy it, download it, steal it, hahaha. It’s the way it is today. Anyway, we’re here beacause we like creating music and it’s normal we’d like as big exposure as possible, but it is also very hard to make music if it doesn’t pay off. There must be a balance, else it’s really hard and only a matter of time before it all falls apart.

8. What is going on with the other musical projects these days?

We used to be members of several Croatian underground metal bands. I released an album called “Paths of Insanity” in 2004 with a band called Forlorn Legacy and toured Europe with Vital Remains back in 2005. Ivo (lead guitars) played for a local undergoround band Mercenery Cockroach and released two guitar-oriented solo albums in his band called Arthrone. There’s no projects going on right now, except for new Infernal Tenebra music as we’re focused on making the next release even more extreme, more catchy at the same time. We listen to our fans, the reviews and try to lead the band into the right direction. But in the end, we’d never make music we don’t personally like. It just comes out naturally. I mean, I don’t care about metal sub genres anymore, we create what comes out, we work on that to be as assured as possible we accomplished our vision and the rest is up to the fans to decide.

9. What direction do you see your music heading into on future releases?

I’m sure it will evolve even more into something more accessible to wider audience, but still very powerfull and old-school. It will flow even better, be more intense but at the same time more listenable.

10. What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your
newer music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

It’s hard to say as we listen to tons of music, some not even having much to do with metal music at all. I don’t know, from Gojira, Revocation, Obscura, Necrophagist to jazz. Even shitty pop music if we need to vomit or have fun with.

11. Does Occultism play any role in your music?

It used to, especially in the early days. But I guess it kinda faded away. I’m not the suitable person for that question, but I think Paolo would be the real deal for that.

12. Outside of music what are some of your interests?

Well, you know... I’m into music production and science. Ivo (guitars) is a guitar instructor in the local music school and enjoys fishing. Paolo works in the national electric company and is also into motorcycle sport and Sandi (drums) works in the metal industry. Apart from that, we enjoy good wine, watching bands playing live, hanging out with friends and getting drunk or whatever, you know, the usual shit.

13. Any final words or thoughts before we wrap up this interview?

Check us out if you’re into sincere, no bullshit, extreme metal music and support us! Thank you!

Wednesday, December 12, 2012

Elders Of The Apocalypse are a band from Tennessee that plays a mixture of war, black and thrash metal and this is a review of their 2011 cassette "The Law Of Iron" which was released by No Visible Scars.

Drums range from slow, mid paced to fast drumming with a great amount of brutal sounding blast beats being thrown into the music, while the bass playing has a very dark tone with riffs that follow the riffing that is coming out of the guitars.

Rhythm guitars range from slow, mid paced to fast riffing that combines war, black and thrash metal to create a sound of t heir own with a great amount of heavy, raw and primitive riffing, while the lead guitars are very violent, raw and primitive black/death/thrash metal guitar solos and leads.

Vocals are all black/thrash/war metal screams and growls as well as some samples from movies, while the lyrics cover sorcery, barbarians, rituals, war and thrash metal, as for the production it has a very raw and primitive sound to it which is perfect for a cassette.

In my opinion Elders Of The Apocaylpse are a very great sounding heavy, raw and primitive mixture of black, war and thrash metal and if you are a fan of this musical genre, you should check out this band. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Warriors Of Holocaust" "Plaguelords" "Spell Of Destruction" and "Your Kingdom...Now In Ruins". RECOMMENDED BUY.

Tuesday, December 11, 2012

Vein are a 1 man band from Boston, Massachusetts that plays a very heavy, raw and primitive form of black/goat metal and this is a review of their 2012 ep "Into The Vein" which was released by No Visible Scars.

Drums range from slow, mid paced to fast drumming with a good amount of blast beats being thrown into the music at times, while the bass playing has a very dark tone with riffs that follow the riffing that is coming out of the guitars and at times they have a very powerful sound to them.

Rhythm guitars range from slow, mid paced to fast black/goat metal riffs that are very dark, raw and primitive sounding, while the lead guitars are very raw and primitive sounding black/death metal guitar solos and leads.

Vocals are mostly deep black/goat metal growls and screams with a brief use of demonic laughter, samples and sound effects, while the lyrics cover Satanism, Occultism, Darkness and Violent themes, as for the production it has a very dark, raw and primitive sound to it while you can still hear all of the musical instruments that are present on this recording.

In my opinion Vein are a very great sounding heavy, raw and primitive black/goat metal band and if you are a fan of this musical genre, you should check out this recording. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Satanic Ritual Rape" and "Kill". RECOMMENDED BUY.

Slumber Room are a duo from Seattle, Washington that plays a very atmospheric, raw and primitive form of industrial black metal and this is a review of their self titled 2012 ep which was released by No Visible Scars.

Drum programming ranges from slow to mid paced beats that give the music an industrial feeling, while the bass playing has a very dark tone with riffs that follow the riffing that is coming out of the guitars, as for the synths when they are utilized they bring a very sad and depressive sound to the music.

Rhythm guitars range from slow, to mid paced riffs that combine raw and primitive sounding atmospheric black metal with industrial as well as some slight gothic influences and there are no guitar solos or leads present on this recording.

Vocals are all grim sounding and high pitched distorted black metal screams that have a depressive feeling to them at times as well as some deep growls, while the lyrics cover dark themes, as for the production it has a very dark, raw and primitive sound to it with some of the songs being long and epic in length.

In my opinion Slumber Room are a very great sounding hybrid of industrial and atmospheric raw and primitive sounding black metal and if you are a fan of those musical genre, you should check out this band. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Some One... Everyone... No One..." and "Stellar Death Rites". RECOMMENDED BUY.

Kvist where a band from Norway that played a very grim, melodic, atmospheric, raw and primitive form of black metal and this is a review of their 1996 album "For Kunsten Maa Vi Vike" which was released by Avantgarde Music.

Drums range from slow, mid paced to fast drumming with some blast beats being thrown into t he music at times, while the synths bring a very dark, epic and atmospheric sound to the music, as for the production it has a very strong and powerful sound with primitive black metal riffing that dominates throughout the recording.

Rhythm guitars range from s low, mid paced to fast Norwegian black metal riffs that are very dark, atmospheric, raw and primitive sounding along with a great amount of melody being thrown into the riffing and there are no guitar solos or leads present on this recording.

Vocals are all grm sounding black metal screams, while t he lyrics are written in Norwegian and cover Occultism, Darkness, and Battles, as for the production it has a very dark, raw and primitive sound to it while you can still hear all of the musical instruments that are present on this recording with some of the songs being long and epic in length.

In my opinion Kvist where a very great sounding atmospheric, melodic, raw and primitive sounding black metal band and if you a re a fan of this musical genre, you should c heck out this album. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Ars Manifesta" and "Vettenetter". RECOMMENDED BUY.

Zyklon-B where a band from Norway that consists of many well known members of that scene with a musical style that I would be describe as being hateful, raw and primitive sounding black metal and this is a review of t heir 1995 ep "Blood Must Be Shed" which was released by Malicous Records.

Drums r ange from slow, mid paced to fast drumming with a good amount of blast beats being t hrown into t he music, while the bass playing has a very dark tone with riffs that follow the riffing that is coming out of the guitars, as for the synths when they are utilized they bring a very dark and atmospheric sound to the music.

Rhythm guitars range from slow, mid paced to f ast 90's Norwegian style black metal riffs that are very raw and primitive sounding, while the lead guitars when they are utilized are very raw and primitive sounding black metal guitar solos and leads.

Vocals a re all hateful black metal s creams and growls with some samples being thrown into the music at times, while t he lyrics cover violence, mass destruction and war themes, as for the production it h as a very dark, raw and primitive sound to it.

In my opinion Zyklon-B where a very great sounding hateful, atmospheric, raw and primitive black metal band and if you are a fan of t his musical genre, you should check out this ep. RECOMMENDED TRACK "Warfare". RECOMMENDED BUY.